It was the will and purpose of God from the beginning for us to live a blissful life. However, the suffering began when humanity willingly disobeyed God.
As a result, creation waits in eager expectation for revealing of God’s children since God subjected it to the bondage of decay because of sin (Romans 8:19-23). Therefore, suffering is a universal language.
What is Suffering?
According to the dictionary, suffering is the state of undergoing pain, distress, or hardship. Suffering for Christians is different compared to non-believers. God allows suffering for his children to test and build their faith in Him.
Some months ago, I lost my job. It wasn’t a consequence of disobedience but testing of my faith. I was and still am a faithful giver and tither.
In Malachi 3:11, God promises to rebuke the devourer on our behalf if we faithfully give our tithes and offerings. I had all reasons to ask God questions and complain, but I chose to follow Job’s footsteps.
I thanked the Lord and worshiped him. Furthermore, I committed myself to serve him more than before. So why did the Lord allow my job to be lost?
He allowed it to happen to realign me to His purpose for my career and life. Long story short, I lost my job to discover my gift of ministering the Word through writing and change people’s lives while earning.
Today, second to the Lord, my work gives me more satisfaction than anything in this world.
According to John Piper, one reason for suffering is strengthening our faith; no doubt, my faith was strengthened and raised to another level. Therefore, Christian suffering always has a purpose.
Everyone suffers in some capacity, and if you haven’t, you will because Christ tells us, “… In this world, you will have trouble…” (John 16:33). Therefore, suffering is inevitable for each one of us.
Why do we Experience Suffering?
1. Disobedience
As we have seen, suffering came because our first parents willingly disobeyed God. So, therefore, Christians experience suffering when they go against God’s Word.
God loves his children; therefore, he allows suffering in our lives because he intends to produce fruits of righteousness in us. Conversely, when we disobey God, we suffer the consequences of disobedience.
Those who die without Christ will experience God’s Judgment resulting in eternal suffering, for the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).
Because God is our loving father, he allows suffering to discipline us (Hebrews 12:7-13). Therefore, it is better a little suffering for discipline than eternal suffering for judgment.
Now, we will look at some examples of people who suffered because of disobedience.
The Children of Israel
The Israelites were an obstinate bunch. They annoyed God so much that He was fed up and wanted to destroy them and start another generation with Moses (Exodus 32:10).
They constantly disobeyed God, grumbled and complained, and even worshiped idols. Their journey to Canaan took 40 years because of disobedience. Along the way, many died because of plagues.
They witnessed the earth swallowing Korah and his band of rebels but continued in disobedience. Additionally, snakes bit them in the wilderness, and they experienced many other forms of suffering for their disobedience.
Jonah
Now, we all know the story of Jonah from Sunday school. God sent Jonah to Nineveh to warn the people to repent. If not, God would destroy them. However, he disobeyed the Lord and went to Tarshish (Jonah 1:1-3).
The consequence? Well, a big fish swallowed him alive. Hence, he was in the fish’s belly for three days and nights because of disobedience. But thank God, Jonah repented and did as the Lord had earlier instructed him.
Ananias and Sapphira
In Acts 5:1-11, we read the story of Ananias and his wife, Sapphira. They did a noble thing to sell their property. Nevertheless, they decided to hide part of the proceeds and lie to Peter about it.
They suffered the death penalty because of lying to the Holy Spirit. Ever wondered where Sapphira was for the three hours after his husband’s death? Woe to you, church latecomers (hehe).
2. Test of Faith
As mentioned above, Christian suffering has a purpose. One of the primary purposes of suffering is our faith’s testing.
Our faith is like a muscle. What happens when we start working out? Our muscles undergo some strain, and as lactic acid fills up, we experience muscle cramps.
But these muscles grow stronger when they undergo strain and stress through exercises. Our faith acts in the same way. God allows suffering in a Christian’s life to test the genuineness of his faith.
Just like the muscle, suffering strengthens our faith. Therefore, our response during hardships should be that of Job and Joseph, as we will see next.
Job
Job’s righteousness and love for God were evident for everyone to see. God himself had a good testimony about Job. But God still allowed him to experience suffering.
Now, Job had every right to complain and ask God all sorts of questions. But look at his response, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Job 1:21).
Job lost his children, servants, oxen, donkeys, sheep, and camels. I believe no one in this world has or will ever experience what Job faced. But in all this, “Job did not sin in what he said.” (Job 2:10).
His attitude is what we should adopt as Christians when we suffer. Complaining and murmuring prolong our suffering. But worshiping the Lord and thanking him shortens the suffering and produces perseverance, patience, and strengthened faith (like our muscles).
Joseph
When reading Joseph’s story, we miss a lot of detailed experiences after his brothers sold him. Imagine what he endured. Remember, he went to Egypt as a slave. In those days, a slave and an animal were equals. Add to that the longing to see his father and brother Benjamin. But Joseph endured all this with hope and faith.
He held on to God even though he was in a foreign land. He could have yielded to Potiphar’s wife and escape prison life, but he would have destroyed his purpose. Therefore, he chose to honor God and suffered in prison until he was appointed Prime Minister.
Did Joseph complain? I highly doubt it. In Genesis 50:20, he says, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Joseph understood the purpose of his suffering in Egypt, and God used them to shape him into a Prime Minister who saved the whole world from famine.
3. Compassion and Encouragement
“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33),
Jesus tells us we will suffer because we live in this world. Therefore, we will experience sickness, lack, and death. But Christ also comforts us to take heart because he has overcome the world.
How has Christ overcome the world?
Jesus lived in this world and experienced human suffering first hand. Therefore, he understands what hunger and fatigue mean. Moreover, he felt pain and immense suffering when the soldiers crucified him, bringing us salvation.
Hence, Christ tells us to take heart because he experienced human suffering and can empathize with our weaknesses (Hebrews 4:15). Furthermore, Jesus encourages and comforts us through his Holy Spirit, who lives in us.
We also encourage our brethren who go through the same difficulties we have endured. For example, when you lose a job or someone close, you can comfort those who go through the same experience because you triumphed over that grief.
What Should We Do When Suffering?
When suffering, we should try to comprehend the purpose of God at that moment. In Romans 8:28, Paul assures us in all things; God works for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose.
Therefore, everything that happens in a Christian’s life happens to their advantage. In our case, any suffering we experience as Christians benefits us long-term.
It may be hard to see the good in suffering, especially when we aren’t facing the consequences of disobedience. But we should respond to our afflictions like Job and Joseph.
We should never complain or murmur while suffering because God dislikes such attitudes. Instead, God’s glory shines brightest when we endure suffering patiently while praising, serving, and worshiping Him. Job proved it’s possible to endure suffering and never complain or utter a word against God.
A cloud of witnesses surrounds and cheers us on in this journey of faith (Hebrews 12:1). Therefore, take heart and be courageous when suffering because you are not alone.
Finally, we should anticipate suffering because it has been granted to us on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him (Philippians 1:29).
By: Angelo Shamoon
Are you experiencing suffering of any kind? Please, feel free to contact me for counseling. I will be ready to assist you in this journey of faith. CLICK HERE to begin!
Updated on April 2021